Climate Change and a Child's Confusion

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If the oceans are rising, will we all drown?

That's a question 8-year-old Molly asked after overhearing a conversation about climate change.

Recent media hype surrounding the planet's changing climate, including talk about rising temperatures, flash droughts, flash floods, more intense hurricanes and more unpredictable weather patterns, can create questions, confusion and fear. This is especially true for young children (under the age of 10). They typically lack the cognitive skills to process complex information, which means they can have a distorted sense of time, place and distance.

Because climate change is a complicated (often controversial) subject, many parents don't like to delve into the issue too deeply. That's understandable. But if you have a child like Molly, who's asking questions or is worried about the future, you don't have to be a scientist to provide some answers and comfort.

Here are a few things you can do to lessen your child's weather worries:

Answer questions honestly but be willing to admit when you don't know.

Clear up any confusion between weather (what's happening today) and climate (weather conditions over a long period of time).

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